August-September 2005

I have to admit this is when everything actually started to change....... about a week before Katrina decided to come pay a visit, I started to notice that my left nipple was a bit more sensitive and started leaking this light brown liquid. Me, never ever having any health issue ever, (well unless you count my wisdom teeth), didn't pay much attention and thought that it was a breast infection. I didn't have a gyno at the time and with school starting I really didn't have the time to take care of it. Then Katrina came to town and we were sent to College Station/Bryan, TX. As you know, Katrina just didn't come to town, she decided to stay and have this HUGE party and create havoc all over town and not just in the city of New Orleans but also in the suburbs(Metairie) where my parents live.

I know you are thinking where oh where is this going but I promise it has something to do with my breast cancer just give me a couple of moments.

So here we are, myself, my daughter and my parents in a strange town(a college town at that, ugh!) not knowing what is actually going on back home. Not knowing if we even had homes to go back to, especially me as I was living in New Orleans and 80% of it was under water. My sister was the first to get back to my parent's house in Metairie and calls them. She says that they better get back and save what they want because the mold is already 2 feet up the walls and climbing...... so we(my parents and I) decided that it would be better for my mom and I to go back since I had a huge rental car and could fit alot of stuff in it and my dad could stay back and make sure Elizabeth went to school. My mom and I left at 11pm that night and I drove all the way back on very little sleep, got to her house and proceeded to try to save as much as we could. Well, for those of you who lived through it I don't need to tell you how god awful the smell was or how dark it was in your house even with all of the windows open that first day you got back. I will never forget walking in my parent's house with white shoes and walking out with black shoes. We stayed until we couldn't stand it anymore, went to my sister's mother in law's house(she lived in Kenner and didn't get any water in her house) took a cold shower and left to go back to Texas. When we got to Baton Rouge we finally got to eat something, we hadn't really eaten anything since that early morning and we were starving. My mom tried to drive but was so tired that she nearly ran us off the road, I took over then and drove all the way back doing anything I could to stay awake. By the time we got back I had been up almost 48 hours, my body was drained and tired.

Now all this time my nipple is still draining and it is getting harder to keep a secret because it would leak through the paper towels I would put in my bra.

My parents decided to go back to Metairie and actually clean out their house, get rid of the things that they knew they couldn't salvage and pack the rest. They were there for 2 weeks, while Elizabeth and I stayed in Texas. During that time I got sick, really sick with a very serious sinus infection due to helping my mom save stuff from her house, so I went to the doctor and he put me on some really strong antibiotics(can't remember what it was though). While I was on it, the leakage from my nipple had stopped and I thought everything would be just fine...... boy was I very very wrong!

Boobs

As long as I can remember my boobs always defined who I was. I started developing early, I was in either 4th or 5th grade when I started noticing them and by 6th grade the "boys" started noticing. In fact, one of my best friend's father gave me my first nickname "boobs" and that's how I was known with that circle of friends and to this day they still call me "boobs". While in high school, my boobs didn't matter much, I went to an all girl high school and I really didn't go out much or have too many male friends until senior year and that's when it hit me....... I could get a guy to do almost anything because of my boobs. And I will admit that I took advantage of my "power" when I needed/wanted too. When I started hanging out at "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" that's when I really realized that boobs have a power over men, they will kiss the ground you walk on especially if you have "big boobs" and that I did! There were a few nicknames that I got from my group of friends, I can only recall one in particular that Big Glen gave me "Golden Winnebagos", I can't remember where he got that from but that's what he called me as well as most of the guys.

Going clothes shopping has always been fun and I would buy shirts that would show off my "boobs" on purpose but not anything that would show them off too much. The low cut shirts were my favorite and would wear them with pride holding my head up high as if to say "Here are my girls please take a look because they are beautiful and you won't find anything better than them." And most guys would answer that call with a long big eyed stare. Boy the attention that I got because I had "big boobs".

The one thing that disappointed me regarding my "boobs" was the fact that I was unable to breast feed my daughter. Other than that I loved them, especially after I had Elizabeth. Wow, they were even bigger, so I got the chance to go out and buy even more low cut shirts, shirts that would really show them off!

Wednesdays....... a day I don't look forward too

Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday........ is definitely not a day I look forward to because it is the day I have to drive an hour away to Houma, LA in order to get chemo. I have been getting Herceptin every Wednesday for the past 3 years(well, almost 3 years). Sometimes I get lucky and my daughter or mother or even a friend will take a ride with me. Now don't get me wrong, I don't mind doing it, it is actually keeping me in remission, but having to drive all that way by myself just gets to me.

My first Blog entry Ever!

I probably should have started a blog way back in 2005 when all of this started, but Katrina had come through New Orleans and we were living in Texas for a few months and once I got home I had to find a new job, a new car and help my parents with their rebuilidng efforts and get them back home. But I guess it's always better late than never.

This blog will not only be about what is happening in my life right now but I will also make an attempt to explain the path I've followed to get where I am today since Katrina. It will be about the ups and downs, ins and outs and hopefully give some hope to women and men who are going through what I did and what I am going through.